‘Awareness is necessary’

Wednesday

The regular meeting of the City of Ardmore Mayor and Board of Commissioners convened Monday evening.

After the invocation, Mayor Sheryl Ellis delivered a proclamation to Lori Hoben, Healthy Living Committee of Ardmore. The proclamation declares the month of November as Diabetes Awareness Month in the city. In the presentation, Ellis said about 14.3 percent of the adult population of the State of Oklahoma have diabetes and 36.9 percent of the population have pre-diabetes. “Whereas an increase in community awareness is necessary to put a stop to the diabetes epidemic,” Ellis said, while reading the proclamation.

Lori Hoben, a condition management nurse at Michelin Family Health Center, thanked the city and commissioners for allowing their participation Monday. Chelsea Connell, the health engagement coordinator for the Michelin Family Health Center, said she supports Hoben at the facility to promote healthy living.

Items presented on the consent agenda were approved, including the appointment of Harold Waddell to the HFV Wilson Community Center Advisory Board to fulfill the unexpired term of Nathan Thomas, with the term to expire in June 2019. The board also approved acceptance of the Edward Byrne Memorial Justice Assistance Grant Program Local Solicitation in the amount of $27,247 for fiscal year 2018-2019.

Regular business items included approval of increased expenditures for new Fire Station Three in two parts: one agreement for $334.79 for stainless steel covers to conceal piping in the shower area and the other for $3,338.67 for the redesign and hanging of the front door. Fire Chief Cary Williamson said the lock that was designed for the front door causes the door to not close properly. “We had to totally redesign that door,” Williamson said. “We looked at various alternatives. This was the best one.”

These two changes brought the total of all change orders for the project to $13,873.94, or .84 percent of the total project cost, Williamson said. “As Tom Mansur would say, this is an effort to perfect the project,” Williamson said.

Consideration was also taken on approval for the replacement of the composition roof at the Oklahoma Highway Patrol building. The expenditure in the amount of $27,180 from the state contract Oklahoma Roof Asset Management Program was approved along with an additional standard charge for administrative fees to use the program of the Oklahoma Office of Management and Enterprise Services in the amount of $951.30. Tommy Miller, fleet superintendent,, said the building has significant wear inside with cracked sheet rock visible “up the wall to the other side.”

“This is something in dire need of repair,” Miller said. “We can get this back on track and get it looking nice for everybody going in there to the OHP and the Tag Office.”

JD Spohn, city manager, along with Mita Bates, CEO and president of the Ardmore Chamber of Commerce, spoke on the consideration of two sublease agreements for property leased by the city to the Ardmore Development Authority. A sublease within the Ardmore Industrial Airpark to Carbonyx, Inc., was approved by the ADA at their meeting last month, Spohn said.

“In 2014, they actually approved an assignment for lending purposes,” said Bates. “That’s what this is. They’re now refinancing that debt and so it needed to be approved again.”

“This is the same type of issue,” said Spohn, of a sublease to Tactical Electronics and Military Supply, LLC. “They had a lease before, a few years ago. It’s time for more operations and training by them.”

Bates said the company has a large facility in Broken Arrow. “We’re very pleased they’re using our air park to do some of their testing,” Bates said. “They’ve leased from us before. Part of that included cleaning their space, which they did very nicely.” Bates said the sublease agreement is set to start in December, having already received FAA approval.

Before adjourning the meeting, the board moved to executive session regarding the status of negotiations between the city and the International Association of Fire Fighters, Local 1881, for a new collective bargaining agreement for fiscal year 2018-2019, per Title 25 of Oklahoma state statutes.

Never miss a story

Choose the plan that's right for you.
Digital access or digital and print delivery.